The Twine of a Dragon's Tail
by Teania
Summary: AU story. Robin is a young boy waiting for his first dragon. Little does he know when that times comes, his life will change forever... Sladin
1. Chapter 1

It was a bright spring day. The chills of winter had finally melted away with the snow, making the tiny streams overflow with fish and fresh water from the mountains. The trees were just starting to blossom with their wonderful green leaves and flowers which would be fruit before long. These trees surrounded the tiny village on the coast of the sea. It was a small town; the valley it rested in had large fields that were currently being plowed for the new season. A few young children ran around, while their parents worked. High above the valley, a mountain peak loomed over them, its grey rocks standing out against the green valley.

Robin sat in a tree just outside the village, a few of his namesakes enjoying his company in the branches of the old oak. Today was the day most of the young men and women in the village would receive their dragons, the sacred rite which proceeded their entering the village as those who would grow up to protect and care for the citizens. Robin was only 16, still as small as a kid to his great annoyance when it was pointed out. He was one of the younglings who would choose their mount, the creature that would live beside them for the rest of their lives, sometimes just a bit longer.

Robin sighed dreamingly, his hands reaching up and petting a few of the robins surrounding them, feeling their soft feathers on the pads of his fingers. He closed his eyes, feeling excitement and dread fill his chest.

Though it was exciting to earn the right to ride a dragon, it was also dangerous; each youth had to climb to the dragon's peak at the top of the mountain that loomed over his town and the valley. Dragons had been nesting up there for centuries. It was the climb that was one of the challenges of obtaining a dragon. The second was to retrieve an egg, without the mother dragon seeing the theft and then carry it safely back down so that the village elders. The Wise men of their village could hatch it in the coals of the great fire pit. It would hatch between a few hours and a week. Once hatched, the person would begin to train their dragon, under the tutelage of the strongest dragons and riders in the village.

If the dragon didn't reject the rider, it would become a companion to the youngling and become their mount for life. Growing rapidly from a hatchling no bigger than the small dogs the village women used for hunting rats (*1), to the size of the large horses the village used for plowing. (*2) It may even grow to the size of the animals the sailors told stories of. The ones that they hunted for oil to light the lamps (*3)

But, if the dragon rejected the rider, there were consequences. It was a sin to drop the egg of the dragon, wasting the precious life on the base rocks of the mountain. And if the mother dragon caught you, it was certain death, if not by fire, than by the fall from the ledge. If the dragon hatched and rejected its rider, there could be serious injuries. They were lethal as soon as they hatched, able to defend and fight at birth.

Robin had seen the men who had been rejected, scarred and bitter old men. He had never witnessed one happen until 2 years ago when a young man named Victor brought his egg down from the mountain. He remembered if vividly…

He stood with the other members of the crowd as the young men stood at the base of the mountain. In their arms were eggs the size of the exotic melons the ships sometimes brought. He cheered as he saw his friend Victor, one of the few dark-skinned men in their village but now that he had a dragon, he would be no different than any of the others. He raised his arms, jumping up and down to get his friend's attention. He saw small splotches of red on his friend's leg but paid no mind as the village elder, a burly man named Bruce walked in front of the boy's, inspecting the eggs for fertility and for any damaging cracks that may have killed the baby dragon inside. Robin watched eagerly, wanting his larger friend to succeed. He smiled and called out Victor's name when it was deemed the dragons were safe and the boy's followed after Bruce. Walking into the Grand hall where only the elders went. Where the Great fire pit was kept. It was built right into the mountain, where the hot stone from the rocks created the fire and heat that was needed to hatch the eggs.

Robin followed with the others and stood outside waiting for what would happen next. He did recognize the other boy's going in. There was Roy, a young man everyone called Speedy because of his swiftness with the bow and arrow. Robin never really spoke to him as he was a bit of a jerk sometimes and had a strange sense of humor. Not to mention he picked on Robin for his height, making Robin compete against him at most things. Another boy was there, Red. He had shown up in the village a few years ago and never really settled in. Since he had shown up there had been thefts all around the village and everyone knew it was Red who pulled them off. He was skilled but somewhat good natured in his theft, always leaving something behind… Not always something good but still. He was also scrawny like Robin so the dark haired boy felt some kinship with the thief. If only for his similar predicament in body strength. Other than those two, he knew no others in the group.

He had never seen what had happened in the Great Hall, but he saw his friend being carried out by a few of the guards, his body bloody and broken, about an hour later. He rushed forward and cried as he followed after his friend, reaching out to hold his hand only to be slapped away by the guards. He was terrified that Victor was dead!

It wasn't until much later that Robin had learned what had happened from Red and Speedy. Victor had slipped coming down from the mountain and cut his leg badly. It wasn't all that much of a wound but it was bleeding. Then when he entered the Hall, his egg was the first to hatch, half an hour earlier than normal and smelling the blood, it went after Victor, who was too weak to fight it off. The dragon had escaped, too wild to be trained, they let it escape up to the mountain, off to find its own life.

Victor survived but the dragon scarred his body so badly he lost an eye and the full use of his right hand. His legs as well were badly scarred with burns and he had trouble walking sometimes. Still he tried to prove himself to the village and helped with the labors and chores. He was considered a monster but Robin considered him a friend still.

Robin shuddered in remembrance and opened his eyes, he feared meeting such a fate, he was already an orphan and, though he lived with the village Elder Bruce and another Elder named Alfred. He had lost his parents when he was just a child, 9 years ago. He had been sleeping and awoke to screaming. He ran to his parent's room and saw them murdered. He never saw the man's face but the man was found and taken care of. Afterwards it had been a debate on who would provide for the child. Since most of the households were full and none wanted a child who was so traumatized and heartbroken. Bruce had stood up for him and taken him in, along with Alfred. Both of them knowing the pain of loss when Alfred lost his son and Bruce had lost his father (*4).

Despite that, he was a sweet boy, exceptionally smart and like his parents, he was a wonder of an acrobat, having the balance and speed of a dragon himself. Hence how he had gotten himself so high up in his oak tree. He sat in the topmost branches, able to see the blue sky perfectly from where he sat. He saw several dragons in the air. Most of them were just messengers or trainees, but Robin watched them like they were the kings of the sky, heroes among the clouds.

How Robin longed to fly! He wanted to feel the wind in his dark hair and feel that rush when the ground dropped out from under him as he soared upward into the clouds. He had had dreams of having his own beautiful dragon. The perfect companion for him!

He sighed; he was also terrified of the consequences of failure. Not only could he be possibly scarred or killed, when it hatched. But if he failed, and dropped the egg, he would have to wait a whole year for the other young men to come of age and during that time he would be shunned from the village. His sin tainting him, and with winter as harsh as death, then he would surely freeze …or starve. That wasn't the worse of it; he could be killed when he reached the peak, hell he could be killed just climbing up! And what if his egg had no baby dragon? That had happened before...

He shook his head; there were so many possibilities of what could happen!

Robin looked up at the sky again, distracted from his thoughts by the trumpet of a large black and orange dragon appearing out of the clouds. Dwarfing the other dragons in the sky, they darted out of the mighty beast's way. Robin stood up, balancing on the shaking branch and peering up at the dragon. He knew that one! It belonged to the General! The leader of his village! He climbed even higher to see more of it. Feeling the tree's branches shake from the wind of Deathstroke's wings. The dragon was covered in orange and black scales, his great wings spanning the skies, covering the valley the village resided in, within a great shadow. Robin's expression changed to a bright smile as he felt the wind all around him as Deathstroke landed.

He stared at the dragon from his perch, seeing General Slade climb off Deathstroke's shoulders. He was clad in black leather riding gear, his white hair and goatee standing out against the tan of his skin. He patted the animal's neck. Robin leaned on the branches, watching as the dragon gave a trill and walked off to Slade's personal stable where he slept. Oh how Robin loved Deathstroke, the largest dragon in their village. Elder Bruce's dragon was just shy of his height and had a different coloring all together, but even though he argued about it, Slade's dragon was still bigger.

Even though General Slade was the leader of their village, he had to obey the council of Elders, or at least the rules said he had to, he never really did, making him a very bad subject to bring up around Robin's guardians.

Slipping down the tree, Robin stayed up in the lowest branches, wanting a closer look as Deathstroke passed right under the tree. He was high enough to brush the branches with his wings. Robin held on as he felt the snake like scales pass over his branches, shaking them. He grinned impishly and reached out a hand, petting the dragon.

He did this sometimes, without General Slade ever knowing. He sometimes couldn't sleep and snuck out when Elder Bruce was out with his dragon Bat. Robin would run to the stable where Deathstroke was kept and sneak in, staying in the corner and watching the dragon, sometimes coming close enough to touch. He loved to feel the animal's scales and his warmth. Once the dragon even purred at him and let him touch his head before Robin was frightened by a noise and ran home. It was the best night of his life, seeing those eyes up close!

He laughed as the dragon left and he slipped down from the branches, running off towards his home. Unaware of the stormy eyes watching him.

(*)

1- I'm referring to rat terriers

2-Ever seen a Clydesdale? They are HUGE!

3-Supposed to be sperm whales :D they were hunted for oil lamps

4-I'm twisting it a bit so Bruce is Alfred's Grandson, which would make Robin his Great-Grandson :D

Update(11-16-12):I"m editing these chapters, not much will change but letting you know!


	2. Chapter 2

It was finally the time, when the sun was the highest in the sky and the wild dragons retreated into the caves to cool themselves, that's when the men and women of the village would make the trek up the mountain, to find their mounts.

Robin stood with the other applicants. The white sash bag around his shoulders like the others, he would use it to carry the egg back down the mountain. If it bumped against the sharp rocks, it could tear and it would drop his precious egg.

Robin tightened it again, securing it so it didn't wave around in the high winds above the village, he wasn't alone, and he saw one of the girls adjust hers as well. She was called Raven, her mother was the resident 'seer' of the community, and though not everyone believed she truly was one, Robin had heard rumors of Raven's power. Her mother acted more like a medicine woman who assisted with births and medical problems, never really doing much more with the 'Dark Arts', unlike Raven who was supposedly skilled in it.

Robin did admit she looked different than most of the girls his age. She was smaller than he was, with short black hair and had oddly tinted skin and wore a skintight outfit of just a shirt and trousers cut short to climb. If he had been old enough to be attracted to girls, he would have appreciated the view. But according to Bruce, he was a "late bloomer" And didn't really care for the female form.

Compared to Kori, Raven was a half-pint. Robin grinned down to the tall girl at the end of the line. Kori was a very tall girl with bright orange hair and deeply tanned skin. She was a foreigner who lived in the village with her father who sold weapons and exotic furs in his market stall. He had a ship that would travel every winter, braving the icy dangerous waters to acquire new products, leaving Kori and her sister Koma, who was…. Not exactly well liked in the village, at least by Robin, she was cruel and angry and unlike her sweet sister, she knew what every word in their language meant. Making her a harsh person to be around.

Robin liked Kori so much more, even if she was a girl. She was a bright, silly person and she had so many stories to tell of her homeland, but not all of them Robin understood as she didn't have that well of a grasp of the language they used, turning some words around to make them less than appropriate sometimes. Robin knew one day, he would marry Kori, she was the only one who really understood him and knew how to act around him when he wasn't feeling himself. He knew he loved the girl even if he didn't think about her form all that much, which was clad in apparently a traditional clothing of her homeland, a very short purple skirt and purple tunic that revealed her stomach and arms.

It seemed strange to Robin that the girls were choosing to climb in such short and revealing clothing, weren't they thinking of the sharp rocks? Or the male viewers below? A few of those male viewers were already trying to gain a look, like Red and Speedy, the two chuckling behind the girls. Robin rolled his eyes and looked back forward.

Jumping alittle in nervous energy when Gar poked him, "Do you think it'll be hard to get down?" He whispered. Robin shrugged, noticing his blonde friend was looking greener than usual. His skin was always green tinted from a rare deadly sickness he had endured in his early years. He had survived death but always had a strange hue to his appearance; even his blonde locks had green tints. Sometimes Robin wondered if he would turn green permanently someday.

Robin chuckled at Gar's face when he turned to the boy next to him, another blonde named Joseph, General Slade's youngest son. He was a quiet boy and he looked extremely nervous. Robin looked around and saw why, the general was watching them closely, staring at Joseph with an intensity that Robin at first thought was anger but the more he looked at him, the more he realized it wasn't anger, it was support. Robin looked at Bruce and Alfred, seeing the same look directed at him from Alfred but Bruce was busy watching the mountain, waiting until the very last wild dragon had gone inside.

Robin looked forward again, he felt confident he could get up the mountain; this was the easiest part for him. He climbed great oaks all the time, reaching the tops with no problems, not even disturbing the birds who nested there. He was more worried about when he entered the cave. He didn't know how he would choose his egg or how he would get back down without being spotted…But he was going to try!

Finally the drums signaled that it was truly the Time. He glanced at Bruce who nodded, they already knew the rules.

Robin took off towards the mountain, intent to be the first one up and down. Because if one person messed up in the cave, everyone was in danger. Quickly he started to climb, finding foot and handholds easily and never once looking down. He heard the cheering and Victor's deep voice calling out his name. He smiled and kept going. He figured he was a fourth of the way up when a tan, feminine hand entered his sight. Kori was right beside him, smiling at him, "Come Robin! Let us reach it together!" She called out as she started to keep pace with him. Robin smiled back and kept up with her. Below he heard the sudden calls and took one glance; Joseph had slipped and fallen, holding on by just a hand. He wasn't that far below Robin and he saw his hand start to slip. He didn't stop to think. He let go of the rock and let himself fall down a few feet, his hand reaching for Joseph's wrist. He heard more cries and heard someone shout his name, unsure who.

Grabbing the pale wrist of the boy in his hand, Robin grabbed onto the rocks again. Holding on tight and unwilling to let go. He stared down into Joseph's grey eyes and smiled alittle at him like nothing was wrong. Like they weren't dangling about a hundred feet off the ground. Slowly he pulled him up and let go to wrap an arm around the boy's waist to anchor him. "You okay?" He asked, alittle out of breath. Joseph looked like a skinny kid but he was still heavy.

The blond nodded, his curls swaying in the wind that was really starting to rush by. Once Joseph had a hold of the rocks again, Robin let go of him, this time keeping pace with the blonde to prevent falling again. He heard cheers from down below, just a shy louder than the roar of the wind and saw Kori reach the peak. She was hiding against the side right beside the entrance, catching her breath. She waved down below and Robin heard her father's loud voice boom. He glanced at Joseph and saw him shaking, unable to reach the next hold. Robin scrambled up farther and held out his hand. The other boy staring at him for a moment before taking it.

Robin continued to help Joseph, until both of them were at the top. The dark-haired boy looked down and saw Gar and Raven still climbing, Raven much closer. He took a deep breath and saw Kori enter the cave. Usually they would go in one at a time as soon as they reached the peak but Robin realized that Kori and Joseph were waiting. They were going to do this together.

Looking past the other two climbers, Robin saw the people down below, almost like dots. He could only recognize a few from this height. One being Kori's father, he was a very big man after all. The others were the Elders; all dressed in black and of course General Slade, not by his clothes or his size but from where he stood, apart from everyone else.

Robin felt a bit self-conscious as that moment realizing that Slade had watched him help his youngest up the mountain the whole time. He wondered if Slade would be angry that his son couldn't do it himself and had needed help. The man was a tough General on those he trained, he didn't like weakness. Did Robin cause trouble for Joseph?

He didn't have too much time to think about it as he reached down and helped Raven and Gar up onto the ledge. They were finally all there. Robin put a finger to his lips; he could feel the heat of the air inside the cave and heard the thrum of sleeping dragons. He slowly inched forward first. It was dark just inside the entrance and he had to let his eyes adjust before he continued on. Then he had to shield his mouth, it smelled so awful! Like rotting meat and brimstone, he heard Gar's gag and had to stop himself from doing the same. Soon he saw the source of the smell; there were bones off to the sides of the caves, along with a few broken egg shells. He smiled and looked back at the others, nodding to them to keep going.

They went through a large ground out tunnel, big enough for a ship to pass through! It was dark and they only had the wall and sounds to guide them. The thrum was getting louder, almost vibrating the walls.

After a few moments, he heard Gar's sigh. "How deep is it?" He whispered out from the back. Robin hushed him, but heard the same sort of complaints from the others, Joseph was silent behind him. Robin wanted to answer but he had no idea. He just kept going.

After a few more moments and he just felt Gar about to open his mouth again, he saw light above. He glanced up and saw glow worms, hundreds of them! They opened into a gargantuan cavern and Robin stopped dead in his tracks.

There in the cavern were at least 12 sleeping dragons of various sizes and colours. Robin backed against the wall and kneeled down, seeing the eggs scattered about. The ones by them were cracked and covered with grime, something told Robin those weren't fertile… they would have to go closer. He looked back at the others and saw they had mirrored his movement. He let out a breath and closed his eyes for a second, taking a moment to figure out how to NOT get himself and his friends killed!

He opened his eyes and looked at the others. He was going first so he turned back to the cavern, slowly walking in, watching where he walked so he didn't disturb anything that would jostle the dragons. He had to cover his mouth and nose again. It was so foul in here! He took a large breath through his mouth and kept going. Passing a small dragon curled up around a piece of boulder, he had to step over it as it moved its tail. He froze for a second, looking back and seeing Raven echoing his movements, Kori starting to venture out next. He was heading towards the largest dragon. He wanted a dragon as large as Deathstroke. Though he knew the size of the egg didn't matter, he still wanted to try.

He approached; the eggs were wrapped up in the beast's tail. He started to move slower, trying to pick a middle egg so the animal wouldn't feel the absence. He tensed as it took a large breath in and let it out, shifting and relaxing its tail. Robin took his chance and seized an egg, slipping it into his sling and backing away, keeping his eyes on the sleeping dragon. He jumped though hearing a gasp. His head whipped around and saw, of course, Gar staring directly into the eyes of a dragon. Though it was a smaller one, it could wake the others.

Robin rushed over and grabbed Gar's hand. He saw Raven snatch an egg and Kori already had hers. Joseph was just picking one as the small dragon let out a shrill screech and took off into the air, trying to escape the cavern. Gar let out a shout of terror as the tiny thing swooped at him. Robin growled, now he heard the other's waking up! He just picked up the first egg he saw and shoved it at Gar before trying to drag him out of the cavern as fast as possible.

Thankfully the boy went with him, shoving his egg in the pouch and the rest followed as roars and shrieks filled the cavern, Robin was sure he was going to be deaf the next day! He ran as fast as possible, dragging Gar behind him. He heard the others but didn't dare look back. He was searching for the light that showed the peak. He felt the walls grate against his shoulders as he bumped into the stone but he needed to get out, and needed to get everyone else out!

Finally the exit was insight! Just as Robin felt the brush of wings against his head, the smaller ones were flying with them and attacking their heads, trying to chase them from the cavern, the stupid beasts didn't realize they wanted out as well!

When the peak came into sight, Robin let go of Gar and ran out the entrance, slamming himself against the side of the mountain, feeling the rocks dig into his back. The egg secure against his chest. Gar was next and he shouted in fear as he looked down. Robin rolled his eyes and pulled him off to the side too, his heart was beating a mile a minute as he pushed Gar down the mountain, pushing him to climb down. Next were Raven and Joseph and finally Kori. After all 4 of them were starting to climb down, he heard the thundering and shaking of the mountain as the dragons tried to pursue, but they were all too big to fit through the tunnel at once! Robin started to climb down himself and took dangerous measures to do so, occasionally letting go and letting himself drop only to grab again a few feet down. He heard the cheering now and the gasps as fire erupted from the mouth of the peak.

Robin looked up a second too late and saw a rock slip from its place and start falling down. He avoided it but heard as it hit something else. He glanced down and saw the rock slam into Joseph's back. The boy let go in surprise or maybe pain and fell back onto Gar who shrieked thinking it was a dragon. Thankfully Gar figured it out and helped Joseph climb down. Robin didn't have time to worry, there were more rocks falling and he had to dodge and keep going.

He was finally at the bottom. Letting go a last time to drop into the grass and back away from the mountain, gasping for breath and running over to where Joseph and Gar were. He saw that Joseph had a large gash on his forehead and was unconscious. Gar was beside him. Both of their eggs were fine. Kori ran over as well as Raven. Robin looked at all of them, with the exception of Joseph, they were all safe and behind him, he heard the cheers dully. He looked and saw the whole village cheering and shouting for them. He grinned, feeling pride rush through him.

He had done it!


	3. Chapter 3

Four Days later…

Robin sighed as he sat inside the Great Hall, staring at his for what seemed like weeks now. His had yet to hatch; in fact, his was the only one so far not to hatch. It frustrated him to no end, why wasn't it ready yet?!

Robin sighed again and looked around the Great Hall, where before he had never been allowed in. It really wasn't all that amazing, at least to Robin's eyes. He lived with Bruce after all. It was a large room, almost as big as the cavern up in the mountain, with a large coal pit in the back of the room where the building connected to the mountain. It was filled with hot coals that were never left to die. On top of the coals sat a piece of stone on which all the eggs sat. The rest of the hall was filled with a large round table for the Elders to sit and row of divided space near the coals where the baby dragons were kept.

Robin could see Joseph already with his dragon. A brilliant white dragon with bright blue eyes and Robin swore it could sing. When it was first hatched it made this crooning noise that sounded almost like it was humming a tune. Joseph loved the little creature, and it would be so beautiful when it grew bigger. He had even named it, Kole. Robin liked that name and he had to admit she was a beautiful dragon, already showing signs of getting bigger, having doubled in just 2 days since she was hatched.

Robin sighed again, much more frustrated this time. After their triumph days ago, they had waited until Joseph woke up, being just a bit dizzy before gaining his bearings. Once their eggs had been inspected and then taken inside, Robin had been so excited that he was practically bouncing on his feet, wanting his egg to hatch first! They had set their eggs down on the patch of stone and proceeded to wait.

Kori's was the first to hatch within two hours. A bright pink and white dragon had burst forth and it looks slightly fuzzy to Robin. She named it Silky because of the feel of its scales. It had crawled up her arm to balance on her shoulder. Bruce had looked it over and told her that it wouldn't get much bigger than a dog. Kori didn't seem to care but Robin hoped his wasn't small like that. He wanted a large one, something he could ride and fly on!

It wasn't until the next day that Raven's egg hatched. A larger black and blue dragon emerged, its neck was very long for how young it was and he had horns that were as sharp as knives. He growled at all of them and tried to fly off but Raven seemed to speak in a strange language, the dragon coming over to her and nuzzling against her cheek. She named the strange beast Malchior… A strange name it seemed to Robin. But she had walked away with her dragon, hardly speaking to anyone. But that was Raven's way and Robin didn't have a chance to congratulate her, Joseph's Kole had been born next.

And just yesterday Gar's egg had hatched. It was a sweet little thing. Bright green like him, making Robin laugh and shake his head in memory. Gar had picked the little beast up it had let out a shriek so loud he had to cover his ears. Robin had no idea that dragons could be that noisy! But the little monster was, and he was annoying too! Flying around in his first hour and not leaving any of them alone. Robin had grumbled to Alfred that the dragon should have been called Terror instead of Tofu.

And now Robin sat on a chair, leaning on the warm stone that held the coals and watching his egg carefully, watching for any shaking, anything that could show it was finally his time to meet his mount. He sighed and tilted his head, resting his cheek on his arms. He wanted to see it so much! So much so he hadn't slept well in the whole 5 days. The night before the trial he had been so excited he didn't sleep, instead, he had snuck out and went to visit Deathstroke. Petting the dragon's large head for what seemed like hours. Returning in the early hours of the morning.

He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment, shielding his eyes from the heat of the coals. It was so warm in here…

He jumped as a heavy hand landed on his shoulder. He sat up and looked around before looking up at the body attached to the hand. General Slade was looking at him!

"You shouldn't sleep so close to the fire, you'll burn your face." He said in a deep masculine voice. It reminded Robin of Bruce. He opened his mouth to respond but Slade cut him off.

"So you're the one who's been breaking into Deathstroke's stable."

Robin's heart froze, his eyes widening, he didn't know Slade knew of his nighttime activities!

"Uh…Yea I guess I am… I just wanted to see him! He's such a beautiful dragon, I couldn't resist!" He tried to explain to the larger man. He hoped he wouldn't punish him; after all he was the leader of the village! He was a General, a known killer! Robin didn't know what would happen to him…

Slade looked him over and chuckled, "He has been happier as of recently. I was wondering why until I saw you sneaking out. Do you often disobey Bruce?"

Robin laughed nervously, not sure if he should answer or not. He was sure Slade wouldn't tell Bruce… But he never really knew!

"I…Uh…" Robin tried to respond, to explain but Slade cut him off again, chuckling lightly.

"Well done on the mountain. You possibly saved Joseph's life. You are quite the little hero." Slade's voice seemed steady to Robin but the boy could see something in the man's face that said he was truly impressed. "I have never seen anyone scale the rocks so well, even as they were being idiotic enough to help another." Robin had been about to smile with pride until the last part.

"It's not idiotic to save someone!" He frowned and glared at the general. "He's your son! I wasn't about to let him fall and die!"

Slade raised an eyebrow, "Oh, so you did it to gain some sort of favor from me? Wouldn't Bruce be disappointed?"

Robin's face colored and he sputtered. "Of course not! I did it because it was the right thing to do!" How could he think like that? Not everything anyone did was a political move.

Slade smirked, "You are an odd child, most would have let him fall…" Robin's face turned to stone; Bruce had taught him to value life and to always help those in need. And his parents had been the same way. He wanted to protect life, not be selfish. How could General Slade be so cruel? And to his own son?

Robin glanced over to Joseph, and saw him glancing back. The boy had a scar now on his brow from the fall but he was smiling and shrugging when Robin gave him a questioning look.

None of this was lost on Slade and he flashed a look at his son, Joseph immediately looked away.

Robin's frown increased, was this how Slade was to his children? He knew that the man had two more, Grant and Rose, both lived far away and Robin couldn't help but wonder if this was the reason why.

"You have a very expressive face." Slade's voice jolted Robin out of his thoughts and he crossed his arms, standing up in defiance, not realizing that he was proving the man's statement true. He tried to size himself up to Slade, to show he was an adult so he couldn't be treated like a kid but it didn't work quite like he planned when he realized he didn't even come up to the man's shoulder.

Robin decided to go back to the point; he sometimes had a one track mind. "How could you think it was okay to let your own son fall and possibly die?"

Slade looked like he wanted to roll his eyes but instead he leveled his gaze with the teen's. "It would be his own fault. He would have had to succeed or fail…" His eyes narrowed at the word 'fail', "…On his own. You may be the first set of candidates that didn't try to kill each other or to help one another."

Robin felt a bit of pride there.

"That may not help you when you train, this year. Should be interesting."

The teen deflated a bit, would it hinder them that they had helped each other? Would it matter? He heard Slade chuckling and realized his face had been showing what he was thinking. He frowned angrily and looked the man right in the eye. Why had he been afraid of this man again?

"We'll do fine in your stupid training! We'll be the best you've ever seen!" He shouted, his voice echoing in the large cavern. He suddenly realized what he had done. He had yelled…_yelled_ at General Slade. _The General Slade!_ This man had the biggest dragon in the village and was going to teach them how to fly! Not only that but this man had earned his title! He had won hundreds of battles and was the toughest man in the village next to Bruce!

And Robin had _yelled_ at him and called him _stupid_!

While Robin was subtly freaking out, Slade laughed at him. "We'll see." He said as he turned to go. "Oh and next time you visit my dragon, try being a bit more quiet, and less obvious."

He walked away and Robin couldn't stop himself. "I wasn't being obvious!" He shouted back at him, before covering his mouth and glaring at the man's back. He just told his secret. What a jerk!

Robin plopped back down on his chair and stared at his egg again. "Hatch damn you, so we can show him." He whispered angrily.

The egg didn't answer and Robin continued to stare.


	4. Chapter 4

Eight days.

Eight days…

EIGHT DAYS!

It had been eight days since Robin had retrieved his egg. Eight days he had been waiting for it to hatch. Eight days he had spent in the overly hot hall, staring at an unmoving egg. He now glared at it instead of just stared. Why wasn't it hatching?!

Robin had started to pace 5 days ago. The day after he and General Slade had talked. Since then he had been more frustrated. Wanting to meet his dragon face to face to prove that man wrong!

But it hadn't happened yet! He growled to himself and dropped into the chair, wishing he could grab the egg and shake it, as if that would make it hatch any faster. Instead that would probably kill the life inside of the shell, if it wasn't already dead.

Robin prayed to the gods that he hadn't picked on that was unfertile. He had never known a dragon to take this long to hatch; it was always within the first seven days! He wanted so badly to ride his dragon. Hell he still didn't know if that was a possibility!

The others had already gotten to spend so much time with their pets that Robin was jealous. He watched them as they still stayed in the hall until the stables were ready to house them. The only one that got to go home was Kori's since it was so small. The others though were stuck around the teen and it was driving him mad!

He had started spending his nights at the Hall, despite Alfred's objections. He wanted to be there when the egg hatched. He wanted to see the little head poke out. But what if it never happened?

Robin turned his eyes away when they started to hurt from staring at the shell for so long. He blinked a few times and heard a roar outside the Hall. He knew that sound. He had obsessed over it too long not to know which mount made it.

Deathstroke was angry about something.

Robin wanted to run out and see what was going on but he stayed put, leaning back in his chair. He was tired and hungry and probably in bad need of a bath but he didn't want to miss the chance that if he left for even a minute, his dragon would hatch.

The dragon roared again and there was a smaller cry after it. That got Robin's attention. Not because it was the large dragon roaring but because he had heard the cry from inside the Hall, just 3 feet from him on the stone slab that held his egg.

He sat up and looked to the door of the Hall, They were open to let some air in and Robin could see the great dragon's eye peaking in. It roared again and this time the dark-haired teen heard Slade shouting at the beast. He also heard another cry from the egg.

He leapt up from his chair and crawled onto the edge of the pit holding the coals. He took one chance and jumped to reach the stone slab, hissing as his bare feet made contact with the hot stone. He didn't realize it was this hot and he could feel his feet burning, but he had to get to his egg. He could hear the crying much better now from inside the shell. Maybe his dragon couldn't get out?

Deathstroke roared again and again, Robin could hear men shouting and it seemed that they had no idea what was wrong with the dragon but the teen figured it out. He was calling to the dragon in his egg! He was trying to get him to break through!

"Robin! What are you doing?!" Bruce's voice boomed behind him and he saw the man standing there, his eyes wide with anger and concern, Robin knew why too, his feet were burning and would probably be unable to walk for a few days if not more. But he had to help the dragon!

He didn't answer and knocked on the shell; feeling how hard it was, there was answering knocks and cries in the egg. Robin didn't wait a second longer and pushed against the side of the egg, trying to break it. Outside he heard more dragons, probably trying to control Deathstroke.

Robin concentrated on his egg, regardless of Bruce's shouting his name and the pain in his feet. He was also starting to feel dizzy from the heat of the coals. It was all around him and making his body tired. He had to keep trying though.

He pushed harder and felt a crack. He pulled his hand away and felt the egg start to rock violently and push against the crack. Suddenly there was a loud shriek and a clawed foot burst through, then a wing, an arm and finally the head. Robin's dragon fell outside sideways from the shell and shook itself off, the membrane shaking from its scales, showing dark scales that robin couldn't identify the colour of. He was smiling though, cradling the dragon to his chest as it crooned and let out little cries. Outside there was another roar, this time sounding like something triumphant.

It pained the teen but he stood up and jumped over to the much cooler stones, his legs buckling in pain as his feet hit the floor. He landed hard on his knees but didn't care, he was holding his dragon! He looked up at Bruce, seeing the man's seething face but that didn't matter, nothing did. He had his dragon!

The dizzy feeling dissipated and he was able to see much clearer the colour of the scales and the shape of his dragon. He was a small thing, no bigger than a hawk with 4 legs and two beautiful wings. His tail was long like a whip and his neck was smooth and thin, his head looking up at Robin with whirling eyes of blue. They almost matched the boy's own in their intensity and they closed and nuzzled against Robin's chest.

He could feel the wings flapping wanting to test them out but Robin didn't want to let the little thing go; terrified it would fly away from him. He felt hands on his arms though and looked up in surprise, seeing Slade in front of him; Bruce must have gone to get medical supplies. He stared up at the general and let his arms be pulled away. The baby dragon just cooed and flew a few feet in the air in front of Robin before landing again and making a shrill sound like it was cheering. Robin felt tears come to his eyes, tears of happiness. He finally had a dragon! He instantly knew what he wanted to name it. He saw the colour of the wings, black and dark blue, his underbelly was dark red though.

The little beast crawled towards Robin and nuzzled him under the chin, making a purring noise that Robin had only heard Deathstroke make when he was happy.

"It's a fine dragon Robin." Slade's voice startled him and he turned his eyes back to the general.

"His name's Nightwing." He said quietly. The man laughed. "Don't you want to wait to see if it's a girl?" Robin shook his head; he didn't care if it was a girl or a boy. Its name would be Nightwing. He looked up from the dragon again; his eyes kept trailing towards it. He was in awe of the little creature. It was beautiful and it was bonding with him already.

Bruce appeared at his side again, "Come on, let's get your feet looked at. What were you thinking?" He asked in a soft tone, not really angry. "Nightwing can come with us." Robin nodded, feeling the pain now. He slowly stood up, feeling himself wince with every movement. He let out a shocked sound as he was suddenly picked up, finding it was Slade who held him. He blushed and wanted to wiggle out of the man's arms but Nightwing was resting in his lap, curling up and looking like it would go to sleep.

Robin smiled and let himself be carried, Nightwing was so beautiful…

He finally had his dragon!

(*)

Short I know


	5. Chapter 5

It was only a few hours later that saw Robin sitting in front of Bruce's home on the grass, a couple of canes next to him so he could make his way back inside. His feet bandaged perfectly thanks to Alfred. He had only suffered minor burns and they would heal in a couple of weeks. Meanwhile he would have a lot of trouble walking around.

Usually he would be inside in the large comfy chairs in front the fireplace. But because he refused to be parted from his new dragon, he was outside where the animal wouldn't cause so much destruction.

After he had been brought home by Slade, a thought that made Robin blush, Bruce had inspected Nightwing and determined it WAS a boy. Which, even though he hadn't much cared, it still made Robin happy. The little beast was currently chasing a fly or a bug or something around the front of the yard. He was still small but Bruce had told him he would definitely get bigger, which made Robin's heart swell with joy! He would have a mount!

He had been smiling since, watching his little pet run around, enjoying his time out of the egg, and already using his wings! Nightwing seemed to like to go to lunge after whatever he was chasing before taking off and going after it in the air, only to land a few minutes later. He couldn't hold himself up long enough.

After he was bandaged up, Slade had congratulated him and left, Robin assumed, to go and take care of his dragon after that strange roaring that helped hatch Nightwing.

Robin had to be grateful to Deathstroke. The dragon had helped him to have his dragon. As soon as his feet were healed, he'd find a way to thank the dragon. He had to wonder how exactly he was able to call him like that but he had seen pregnant women talk to their bellies when they got big, so maybe it was the same thing? Except the dragons could hear it?

At that moment it didn't matter much, Robin was just happy. Happier than he could ever remember being. His dragon was beautiful and as it appeared, had a great personality. Nightwing was healthy and amazing; Robin couldn't have wanted a better dragon.

He laughed as said dragon came tumbling towards him and landed in his lap, nuzzling his shirt. The teen ran his hand down the dragon's back feeling the smooth scales on the side while there was a ling of raised ridges on either side of his spine. He could see where the scales would become like plated armor when he finished growing. Nightwing pushed his little head against the bottom of Robin's chin and let out a soft sound, the same purr the teen had heard before. It was so strange that he had only heard two dragons make that sound. Maybe they were related?

Robin chuckled and lay on his back, staring up at the sky as Nightwing crawled to sit on his chest, looking down at him and tilting his head. Almost like a cat would look at his owner if said owner was doing something weird. Robin laughed again, the dragon letting out a squeak as Robin's chest moved up and down with the action. He tried to dig his short, but sharp, claws into Robin's shirt. It didn't hurt but it looked funny and made Robin laugh more. He loved the beast.

Suddenly he heard another sound. He lifted his head as a small white and pink blur jumped over him and tackled Nightwing. His dragon let out a squeak of rage and untangled itself from the other dragon, growling and raising his wings in a display of aggression at the other baby dragon. Robin sat up quickly and recognized the little dragon as Silkie. It had grown fat, probably off of Kori's native food. He turned his head, seeing Kori trotting up, a large smile on her face.

"Robin! I see you have been blessed with a dragon as well!" She said as she sat down beside him. Robin smiled at her and nodded. "His name's Nightwing." Kori smiled back. "A fine name, we were worried you would not join us in the training. Silkie may be small but General Slade said I can teach him how to perform tasks of another kind." Robin chuckled at the way she phrased it. Her way of speaking had always been cute.

"I'm sure he could be a messenger or something like that. He seems pretty smart." Robin glanced over and saw Nightwing hissing at Silkie who was making noises like he wanted to play. Robin wondered why the dragon was acting like that. Maybe it was because Silkie was a little bigger than him?

Both Kori and Silkie seemed oblivious to the way Nightwing was acting but Robin wasn't. Why was his little pet behaving so strange? While Kori began to talk about the training and how much fun it would be, Robin leaned over and tugged the dark-colored dragon into his lap, running his fingers down his neck and shoulders to calm him down.

Silkie just trotted over to Kori and sat beside her leg, going to sleep quickly. Robin forced himself to listen to Kori. "…And General Slade said that while you and the others will be riders, me and Silkie can be used to send supplies! Especially, to you in the air if you ever need them." Her voice took on a strange tone.

She was blushing a bit and was looking at the ground, "Um… Robin… The village will be having a…Ceremony for the graduates of General Slade's training from last year and our successful retrieving of the eggs and the hatching correct?" Robin slowly nodded; there was a celebration every year. It was to celebrate the completion of the dragon rider's training and to celebrate those who were able to retrieve and egg and have it hatch.

Kori looked up at him quickly then back down; she lifted her hand and tucked a strand behind her ear. Robin didn't understand why she seemed to become so shy suddenly. She looked back up at him. "Would you…like to…go with me? There will be music and we could do the dancing?"

Robin was shocked and stared at Kori, was she was…asking him out?! Usually the men ask the woman's father for permission this was so weird!

"Um… Sure Kori, I'd love to." Robin didn't know what else to say, she was his friend and the blush on her face made her very cute right then. He didn't want her to be sad if he said no. So he accepted.

"I don't think I'll be very good at dancing though." He gestured to his feet. Kori beamed. "Do not worry! I can help you!" Robin had to laugh, she just seemed so hopeful. "Alright, then I'll see you that night." It was in about a week and Robin hoped his feet would healed by then.

"Great! See you soon then!" Kori grinned and picked up Silkie, standing to go she hesitated before leaning down and kissing Robin's cheek then running off.

Both Robin and Nightwing were surprised, mostly Nightwing because Robin jerked back, disrupting his comfortable seat. The teen slowly lifted his hand to his cheek and rubbed at where the kiss had landed. It was such a shock that Kori, who was actually a year older than him, would like him…. Let along kiss him!

He fell backwards and closed his eyes to the blue sky. What a weird day! First his dragon hatching and now he had been asked out AND kissed!

He let out a loud sigh and shook his head in the grass. "What next…?"

(*)

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	6. Chapter 6

It was a few days later that found Robin being able to walk again, though only with help of crutches and any available surfaces to lean on. The dance was coming up, 4 days away, and Robin realized he wouldn't be able to dance, let alone walk around that day.

It did sadden him that he wouldn't be able to give Kori the proper treatment of a girl and she would be stuck by his side all night without having any fun, but when he had seen the girl the day before and expressed that he wanted her to have fun with someone else. She either didn't understand the problem or just didn't care. Claiming that they would have fun anyways and she would help him.

So Robin had tried to put it behind him and concentrate on spending the next few days trying to regain some normalcy with walking and maybe running. Which so far, hadn't happened, it was apparent that he wouldn't be running for at least a month.

Nightwing was, of course, not being a big help. He mainly acted like a baby, he slept a lot, ate a lot and drove Alfred and Bruce crazy when he was awake because he had such high energy and loved to get into things. Robin had to wonder if he had ever been like that when he was a kid. And according to Bruce… He was just as much trouble, which made Robin smile every time he thought about it.

Thinking of Nightwing made Robin look to his dragon which followed him around everywhere. He was a smart little thing and knew to keep out of injured boy's way when he was trying to walk or move about. He even made encouraging cooing sounds to the teen when he was struggling. It was cute and sweet of the little beast.

Currently Robin was under his favorite tree, unable to get into the branches with his bandaged feet but was still able to see most of the valley. The village was thankfully close enough to reach but far enough back that he wouldn't have to worry about the baby dragon getting run over by the carriages and carts.

Nightwing was once again, chasing whatever caught his attention. Probably a fly this time since Robin couldn't see it. He watched as the dragon ran after the insect, jumping and stalking like he was a cat.

The teen was watching the dragon so closely, he didn't see something important. Something that truthfully, he should have seen, he was much too big to miss.

He finally noticed when Nightwing bumped into a very large, black and orange scaled clawed foot. He followed the leg up and found himself looking at Deathstroke. Staring at both the tiny dragon, who could have been worn around Deathstroke's neck as a pendent, and Robin.

The huge dragon's whirling eyes caught Robin's and he purred, lowering his head and looking at Nightwing close up. The little dragon squeaked and ran behind Deathstroke's legs to hide, apparently not realizing that they were attached to the head that was looking at him.

"Deathstroke seems interested in your dragon." Joseph's soft voice startled Robin and he jumped, looking up at the standing teen. "Where's your dad?" He asked.

"He's in a meeting with the army, he asked me to take Deathstroke out with Kole. He's been getting restless and tearing up his stable." Joseph sat down beside Robin; Kole appeared to be nowhere in sight. Until Robin heard a soft sound that sounded like singing. He looked up, Kore was in his tree! The white dragon had perched herself on a low branch and was lazily letting her paws hang over the branch while her tail was wrapped tightly around the wood to keep her balance.

"She does that a lot, sing I mean. Dad says she's the only dragon he's ever heard do that. He says Deathstroke is the only one who purrs too." Joseph supplied, seeing how Robin was looking up at her.

"Nightwing purrs too." Robin smiled a bit at that. His dragon seemed so special. Joseph grinned back at him and watched the two dark scaled dragons. The little dragon was cooing at Deathstroke and had started to play with his tail as it moved back and forth lazily. The larger dragon didn't seem to mind and just watched, purring loudly. He had lowered himself down on his belly and now sat playing with the young reptile.

Robin couldn't help laughing seeing Nightwing pounce and try and grab the tail that was waving in front of him. "Does Gener- er your dad know why Deathstroke was roaring when Nightwing was born?" The dark-haired teen asked Joseph.

The other teen looked at him and shrugged. "He had no idea. It took him completely by surprise… You seem to do that a lot…" Joseph looked down at his lap. "He talks about you sometimes… ", Robin tilted his head and shifted to look closer at the blond. He seemed upset, his hands clenching into fists in his lap. It took the boy a moment before he looked back up at Robin. "I guess he's proud of you."

Robin's face was a look of shock. "Proud of me?"

Joseph stared at the two dragons. His face was blank. "Never mind, forget it." He sighed and stood up, reaching up for Kole and catching her as she jumped into his arms. "I'll see you at the graduation." He whistled for Deathstroke to follow him, but the large dragon paid him no heed and kept playing with Nightwing.

The teen wasn't sure what to say. Joseph seemed angry that Slade was paying attention to him. Robin waved goodbye but Joseph didn't return it as he left. What was going on?

Robin sighed and leaned against the tree, watching the dragons play with each other, it was a cute scene, but the teen didn't really pay attention enough to notice. He kept thinking about Joseph's words. "Slade's proud of me?" He murmured to himself. He knew he was a prideful creature, loving the praise he received from Alfred and Bruce. And thinking about the General made him smile slowly. If the leader of the village was proud of him, that was amazing! He slowly forgot the way that Joseph had acted and focused on the fact that Slade was proud of him. Not even stopping to wonder exactly why…

Instead, he focused on the large dragon, smiling as Nightwing had crawled up the dragon's tail, mindful of the spikes and settled between his wings, purring and settling to sleep. Deathstroke seemed fine with it and moved closer to Robin, laying in front of him in a semi-circle and closing his large eyes. Robin chuckled, it seemed both dragons had become tired out. The teen decided to join them, his eyes falling closed for a small nap.

(*)

It was a few hours later that saw Robin back at Bruce's home, curled up in a chair in front of the fireplace. Bored out of his mind, it was true that Nightwing was a great new companion but he wasn't human and he wasn't much fun when Robin couldn't run after him and play with him.

So instead, the teen was sighing and staring at the fire, making irritated noises every time Bruce or Alfred walked by. Yes, he was being a child about the fact he couldn't get up and do anything, but as Bruce had said… it was his own fault.

At least Alfred tried to help. Giving the teen riddles to solve, which only worked for a short amount of time. And afterwards, he felt bored again. Nightwing was no help, he just slept curled up in front of the fireplace, enjoying the warmth.

Robin gave another annoyed sigh, closing his eyes and resting his chin in his hand. "Stupid burned feet…" He mumbled.

"It was your own fault, just as it is your fault that I now have to rebuild a stable."

Robin's eyes shot open and turned in his chair, General Slade stood there with a board in one hand and a box in another. "Wait, why do you have to rebuild a stable?"

"Because your little beast excited Deathstroke so much when he hatched that he broke open the doors." Slade said as he dragged a chair over and sat down opposite Robin. "I expect you to help fix it when you're healed."

Robin was staring in shock as the general set up the board between them. Slowly pulling out pieces from the box. They were intricately carved little pieces of wood, it finally dawning on Robin what they were. "Where did you get a chess set?" He asked as he leaned forward and reached forward to pluck one of the pieces off the board. Slade watched him as he picked up the queen piece and examined it. "Joseph carved it." Robin tilted it over in his hands, feeling the smooth sides and seeing the detail. Joseph made these? Usually you could only get quality pieces if you spent hard earned money at the trading fairs. It wasn't that the board was hard to make, but the pieces, the proper kind were so hard to really make as it took a good eye and slow hands and Vikings usually didn't have both.

Robin set the piece down. "Why are you here?" He asked as he sat back, Slade rolled his eye. "You really are curious aren't you?" He asked as he set up the last of the pieces. "I assume you know how to play?" He asked as he moved a pawn two paces forward.

Robin smiled a little, Bruce had taught him about a year or so ago as the teen would not stop asking about it and it was a thousand times easier just to tell him what he wanted than to avoid it. He nodded quickly and moved one of his pawns up one space.

Slade took a moment to think, staring at the board before speaking and moving his piece. "I came to talk to you about training, You'll be out of commission for the beginning of it. You'll have to either sit out or learn another way."

Robin pouted and sighed. "I know... " He moved his piece and sat back in the chair with a huff. Alfred passed by and rolled his eyes. "But what can I do? Nightwing's not big enough for me to ride him around yet." Robin sighed again and watched as Slade's eye looked at the board, touching his chin for a moment before moving his next piece.

"You're dragon won't be big enough to ride for a while Robin, maybe even the whole year. It's much too early to think about that. What I am talking about is the beginning, feeding, caring for your dragon, checking for injuries... That is things you CAN do. But the running exercises and the flying exercises, you won't be able to do just yet. And if you push your feet too much you'll be lame." Slade's voice was cold as he spoke and Robin frowned and looked down at his bandaged feet. He knew that Slade was right, but he wanted to hurry and be normal again! He was never good at having to wait. He was impatient and impulsive, he knew because he had been told it so much from Bruce.

"So what do I do?" He asked as he moved his piece and realized too late his mistake as Slade claimed his castle.

Slade touched his chin again, Robin's eye flickering down to his hand before looking back at his eye waiting for his answer.

"You'll have to either wait and let someone else train Nightwing, or find a way to move around."

Robin thought about that, he wouldn't let someone else teach Nightwing, the dragon was his! Suddenly an idea came to him.

"What if I'm on a mount? A small pony maybe?" He moved another piece and looked at the general.

The older man raised an eyebrow, "That could be possible. It will have to be one of my horses though, Deathstroke doesn't get along with any other horses unless their mine."

Robin's eyes were wide. "Deathstroke will be at the training?" He asked in a bit of awe, after all the dragon was HUGE! How were they going to fit the trainees, their dragons and him in one spot?

"How else will I teach you if there is no example?" Slade responded as he moved another piece. "Check."

Robin's face fell and his eyes snapped down to the board, he was indeed in check! How did that happen? He stared hard as he tried to figure out his next move, but Slade's words made him look up again. "Besides, I couldn't keep that brute away. He seems to be fond of the new hatchlings."

Robin tilted his head, much like a dragon would, and looked down again before speaking. Moving his king out of danger, he moved forward to sit on the edge of the seat. "He's fond of them?" Did he just sound jealous?

Slade chuckled, "He spends all of the time out of his _ruined_ stable, following around any of the new recruits. Scared the life out of that little green boy today. Quite the sight."

Robin couldn't help laughing at that, imagining Gar and his little Tofu freaking out at the sight of Deathstroke before them. Slade raised an eyebrow at his laugh and Robin covered his mouth, "Sorry, just I can see it in my head. How Gar reacted I mean." The general just kept that eyebrow up and moved his piece. "Check."

Robin's mouth dropped open and he tried to figure out his way around the check, being silent for the rest of that time as he tried his best to now beat the general.

An hour later had Robin growling in defeat and General Slade smirking as he set up the chess board once again. "How come you're staying?" The teen asked annoyed as he sat in his chair, his arms crossed like a child denied his favorite toy.

"Your guardian keeps telling me, and the council that you're annoying when you're bored, so I thought I would come and entertain you, if only to shut the man up." He chuckled as Robin looked murderous. "And, " He added, "So that my stupid dragon will leave me alone. I swear the beast was pushing me towards this house today." Robin perked up a bit at that but was still pouting. "Fine, then let's play. I'm going to beat you this time."

Slade smirked and let Robin go first. "We shall see little bird."

(*)

Only alittle longer and only one new chapter sadly, sorry guys! I'm trying!

Please review and tell me what you think!


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